Ultrafast solvation dynamics: A view from the solvent's perspective using a novel resonant-pump, nonresonant-probe technique

The condensed-phase solvation dynamics of those molecules in immediate proximity to an excited-state chromophore were probed with femtosecond time resolution by a technique that employs resonant optical excitation of the chromophore followed by a nonresonant third-order Raman probe of the solvent. This new method provides a microscopic perspective from the point of view of those solvent molecules that make up the local environment of a dynamic event. In this initial study, we have investigated the solvation dynamics of 9,10-diphenylanthracene dissolved in chloroform.